In her recent piece in the Telegraph, journalist Natalie Paris called Wiltshire the ‘underrated South
West county that has been overlooked for too long’, after Avebury and Castle Combe featured at the
top of Which?’s guide to the UK’s best towns and villages. Further down the list you can find
Salisbury, and cross the border into Dorset for Sherborne and Corfe Castle too.
Paris shines a light on some glorious Wiltshire walks, a serious foodie scene and a treasure trove of
prehistoric and medieval sites here on our doorstep, singling out the Cranborne Chase AONB and the
Nadder Valley, as destinations deserving of a second look, and not nearly as overwhelmed with
tourists as the nearby Cotswolds.
There are special mentions for local favourites Messums and its restaurant The Mess, the Fonthill
Estate, Bird and Carter, The Beckford Arms and its sister pub The Bath Arms over at Longleat, as well
as the newly opened and much talked about Bradley Hare in Maiden Bradley. And for garden lovers
there is much to see, from Iford Manor Gardens to Stourhead (famously at its finest as the leaves
turn at this time of year), Bowood and more.
A recommended read, if you’re thinking of making the move to Wiltshire, or even to remind yourself
why you did!
Image credit: https://adrianwroth.com/)
With the urgent need for new housing in the UK, the Government planning policy is one very much of ‘get it done’, to coin an overused phrase.
HOUSING SUPPLY
Lack of supply is a constant driver of price rises and this basic market force is increasingly pricing those with even above average salaries out of the market, so when one talks about urgent action it really is a case of supplying ordinary people with a roof over their heads. The private rental market can only support so much and with record rent increases this sector is also becoming unaffordable.
WHAT TO BUILD
In some rural areas, Strategic Planning is fast expanding the larger conurbations, and smaller Neighbourhood Plans are allocating what is sustainable. The question that house builders must solve, however, is what to build where; what design, size and cost will best satisfy the demand in any given location. It is perhaps an easier question to answer on the edges of larger towns and cities, where the public sector will employ thousands of staff and average incomes are easier to calculate, but the edge of a village in North Dorset, South Wiltshire or South Somerset will attract a very different demographic.
We are often asked by developers, landowners and parish councils to comment on our perception of demand. With the post-Covid era approaching and with it the exodus from Cities, family homes will always be needed, while affordable housing is an obvious requirement to keep young people in the area that they were born in. A sensible mix of these, with additional units is often the answer, but builders must not scrimp on quality; an offence that some have been prone to.
THE BEST DESIGNS
As a rural agent dealing with a slightly more upmarket product we are big fans of the Ben Pentreath style of build, most notably seen in the hugely successful Duchy of Cornwall Poundbury development, and skillfully brought to life by builders CG Fry. We are lucky enough to have a development of similar, vernacular design on our doorstep here in Tisbury and more are cropping up all over the region. The concept of a variety of architectural styles within a constrained area is not only pleasing to the eye in terms of design, but the properties are also solidly built.
We can’t all live in an aesthetically pleasurable environment, but quality and increasingly green credentials are a must to sustain value, environment and enjoyment, so one can only hope that the right builders get the options on developments and manage to produce housing to be proud of.
CG/RV 21
One could be forgiven for thinking that there are very few properties being sold currently in these extraordinary times we live in. Whilst post Covid stock levels are undoubtedly lower than for many, many years, the private market has been as active as we’ve ever known in 25 years of agency. By this we mean selling without a public marketing campaign or using the internet and advertising. In many cases a brochure is still prepared but we offer the property to our hot buyers and contacts first.
The level of demand from buyers has been unprecedented for all the reasons that have been well documented, and they are extremely eager to hear about fresh houses. So far this year 70% of our country sales business has been conducted off market and there seems no let up – it has been a very popular route to market for many vendors.
A recent article in The Sunday Times highlighted “secret sellers” and so we are not alone in experiencing this increasing popularity. We regularly find that it is an exceptional way of achieving the best price in the current market and both buyers and sellers enjoy the discretion in equal measure. If you would like to find out more, then please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
CS April 21.
Having lived in the countryside for much of our lives, it seems that there has never been such an urge to tread the wild green open spaces of rural Britain. There is a real “Rural Renaissance” going on and we are as busy as I can remember taking calls from buyers and tenants searching for their dream home.
The market is currently in very short supply of quality property and history tells us that when this is coupled with significant increased demand, as is the case at the moment, there is likely to be upward pressure on prices – great news for sellers !
Not all new buyers registering with us are from big cities, there is an awful lot of moving going on generally throughout the UK with many families picking this as their moment to upsize or downsize or simply change the balance of their lifestyle. It is very likely that for many, working from home in some capacity is here to stay. In addition there are always job moves happening and ex-pats returning from abroad which adds some healthy competition too.
Here on the Wiltshire/Dorset border, we have perhaps previously taken where we live for granted but not anymore. The area offers a fantastic lifestyle with plenty going on for all ages whilst still being within easy reach of London for those needing to travel there whether on a daily, weekly or monthly basis.
The last few weeks have seen a healthy level of exchanges which gives us good confidence going forward. Yes, the market has been buoyed up by the stamp duty holiday but if this expires at the end of March as scheduled, we do not believe demand will dry up.
Do get in touch if you would like an informal conversation about public or private marketing – we would be delighted to hear from you.
CS February 2021
2020 was certainly a year with a difference and despite everything, we are pleased to report that it was a very busy one for Rural View. We were joined at the start by Charlie Stone to establish us as a key player in the prime country property market, we revamped our branding and moved into a stylish new office in the heart of Tisbury. It was also our most successful ever business year which saw us agreeing our highest number of sales and lets.
How 2021 will evolve is difficult to predict. We expect that trading in the early weeks might be muted but once the UK finds its feet after leaving the EU and an end of the pandemic is in sight, we are optimistic that the appetite to move will go from strength to strength as it did last year.
Although many aspects of how we lead our lives have been further curtailed following the announcement of the latest lockdown, moving home is not one of them and the property market remains OPEN!
Professionals involved in the house moving process including agents, conveyancers, surveyors and removers can continue to work as usual although we are now working primarily from home rather than the office.
For those needing to sell, you can still prepare your house to be sold, put it on the market, have buyers view and accept offers. Likewise, those who are genuinely searching for a new home can travel to undertake viewings, subject to certain protocols being followed.
The start of 2021 sees the launch of Rural View’s first in-house magazine, click on the link ‘ At Home ‘ to see an e-version or let us know if you would like to be sent a hard copy. We are very pleased with its quality and have already had lots of positive feedback.
If you enjoy social media, click on @ruralviewproperty below to take a look at and follow our striking image led Instagram page which we regularly update with engaging new posts.
